ZAS rebrands Harare Agricultural Show

24 Feb, 2019 - 00:02 0 Views
ZAS rebrands Harare Agricultural Show Minister Shiri

The Sunday News

Dumisani Nsingo, Senior Farming Reporter
THE Zimbabwe Agricultural Society (ZAS) has rebranded its annual agricultural exhibition, the Harare Agricultural Show to the Zimbabwe Agricultural Show as part of its efforts to reinvigorate the event’s national outlook.

In an interview after the prize-giving ceremony for the winner of the Harare Agricultural Show 2018 Agri-produce section, Mrs Simangaliphi Tshuma-Ncube at Khulumausenza Village in Tsholotsho District last week, ZAS chief executive officer Dr Anxious Masuka said the rebranding of the Harare Agricultural Show was premised on the formation of the National Association of Agricultural Show Societies of Zimbabwe in 2017, which recognised the showcase as the apex agricultural exhibition in the country.

“In the new constitution there is devolution and each province is going to compete with the other and it might include the Harare Province also having an agricultural show. So we said let’s be proactive, let’s now reflect the true character of the Harare Agricultural Show, it has always been national in outlook but the name is provincial so if it is a national show it should have a national name hence the Zimbabwe Agricultural Show from this (year’s) show onwards,” he said.

In a speech read on his behalf by the principal director in the Department of Crop and Livestock Mr Joseph Gondo, Lands, Agriculture, Water, Climate and Rural Resettlement Minister Retired Chief Air Marshal Perrance Shiri acknowledged that ZAS unanimously agreed to transform the Harare Agricultural Show to the Zimbabwe Agricultural Show at its 117th Annual General Meeting in January to enhance the national character of the show. He said the ministry was fully behind the rebranding initiative as it was bent on increasing productivity in the agricultural sector.

“My ministry fully supports this move. We hope that it will bring bigger and better rewards for farmers while complementing Government efforts of increasing agriculture’s contribution in attainment of ‘Vision 2020’,” said Minister Shiri.

At this year’s exhibition to be held on 26 to 31 August, ZAS has included a livestock competition whereby excelling farmers would win prizes for showcasing their best animals at the Show.

“Currently we have a tobacco, cotton and agro-produce sections but we are saying that for the 1,8 million households (that are into farming) they do not only do crops, which is agri-produce but the problem with cattle movement we cannot exhibit cattle as easily as we exhibit crops,” said Dr Masuka.

He said the livestock competition, which would involve all forms of animals ranging from small stock to cattle was meant to motivate farmers to improve production.

“In order to motivate farmers further we needed to create competition around livestock and in livestock we refer to poultry, whether indigenous or broilers, goats, sheep and cattle, cattle as in beef and also dairy. We have structured that competition together with Agritex (Department of Agricultural Technical and Extension Services (now referred to as the Department of Crop and Livestock). So it will run alongside the crop competition and the inaugural year is this year.

“We think that by intervening this year we will be able to support both crops and livestock. We have seen it here that if you support crops at a national level for the 1,8 million households you can get sponsors to come and assist because they have an access to a wide market of 1,8 million households so we similarly think we will be able to get that support,” said Dr Masuka.
@DNsingo

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